Finishing

As mentioned, me hearties, t' buildin' and paintin' run together as t' paintin' was done before completely fittin' together t' parts.

Once I had t' shape roughed out, it be time t' fill. However, I wanted t' have a clean paint job with different colors for t' fuselage and t' tube fins. Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! I felt that maskin' would be tough. Ya scallywag! Well, blow me down! But if I painted them first, me hearties, then I would be tryin' t' glue together painted surfaces. Arrr! That didn't sound like it would be t' strong. Ya scallywag! Avast! On t' other hand, shiver me timbers, I KNEW exactly where all t' joints would be (I was usin' four tube fins, paired, arrr, on opposite sides o' t' fuselage. Well, blow me down! Ya scallywag! Since 6 tubes would fit perfectly, arrr, I just placed marks at 60 degrees, 120 degrees, 240 degrees, shiver me timbers, and 300 degrees on t' fuselage. On t' tube fins, matey, two marks each, shiver me timbers, matey, 60 degrees apart, me bucko, would suffice. Avast! Ya scallywag! For increased stability, I let 1/2 o' t' tube fins lag behind t' end o' t' fuselage (also thought would look cooler. Well, blow me down! Later durin' actual preparation o' t' rocket for launch I found it did make access t' t' engine mount awkward.) So marked on all t' tubes where t' joints should be. Ya scallywag! I also marked where I wanted t' put t' launch lug.

I wanted t' "protect" t' joint areas from t' paint and sealer t' set up a stronger joint. On t' UE1 I had placed thin strips o' maskin' tape over these areas. Avast! I discovered t' maskin' tape broke down under t' sandin' process, me hearties, so I tried Mylar tape strips, ya bilge rat, 1/4 inch wide. Ya scallywag! I placed a "tail" over t' edge/lip o' each tube, and then wrapped t' very tip INSIDE t' tube. Turned out t' sandin' still wore off most o' t' tails, but t' tip piece wrapped inside was an adequate marker for removal o' t' tape later. Avast! Ya scallywag! Each strip was 1/2 t' length o' a single tube.

It took five coats/sandings o' Elmer's filler t' get a good smooth surface over t' nose-cone maskin' tape. Begad! Therefore regardin' "savin' money" as a reason t' make your own nose cone--Unless your time is worth less than 25 cents an hour, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, you’re better off buyin' it from Tim. Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! But since this WAS a themed rocket, it seemed worth it. (Although me lovely wife wasn't happy about t' pile o' filler dust on t' front porch!) I need three coats/sandin' t' fill t' DEEP VALLEYS o' t' toilet paper roll spirals anyway, (another reason t' use REAL body tubes.) I sealed t' tube fins (outside only) t' same way.

Note that since this is a rear-ejection model, it allowed me t' cover t' nose-cone/fuselage joint. Blimey! While I was fillin' in t' maskin' tape defects and t' tube spirals, me hearties, matey, arrr, it turns out I had enough filler t' cover t' external coupler. Avast, me proud beauty! In fact, matey, by t' time I was done t' slight residual "bulge" be hardly notice-able. Ahoy! (Performance-minded rocketeers are probably shudderin' at t' added weight o' t' filler required t' accomplish THAT.)

When I be finished, me bucko, ya bilge rat, I had a very nice fuselage with a smooth surface from tip t' tail, arrr, except for t' "break" in t' external coupler where I planned t' put t' launch lug. Avast! Again, had I been thinking, I would have filled this in too and put hidden t' lug in t' tube fin/fuselage joint. Ya scallywag! I believe t' absence o' a nose-cone/fuselage transition gives t' rocket a retro Buck Rogers look. Arrr! Blimey! O' course, shiver me timbers, I also believe in t' tooth fairy. Again, me bucko, I digress......

I knew that tryin' t' fill in t' INSIDE spirals o' t' tube fins was goin' t' be hopeless. Begad! Aye aye! I figured t' insides o' a spaceflight engine would probably look a little "charred", arrr, me bucko, so I planned on paintin' t' inside flat black and hoped that would hide t' defects.

Okay, so paintin' now comes before actually completin' construction. Ya scallywag! Avast! Before starting, I peeled back t' edges o' t' Mylar at t' distal edges o' t' tubes, t' make sure I could find them after paintin' (paintin' t' inside would obscure t' "tails" I had wrapped on t' inside o' t' tube.) T' hard part was FINDING t' edge. Many o' t' "tails" that I had thought would provide "handles" had been sandin' off durin' finishing. Avast! Arrr! But t' tips that I had wrapped on t' inside (unsealed) part o' t' tubes were still there. Arrr! Usin' them as guides, I used an Exacto knife t' peel back t' edges o' t' Mylar tape on t' OUTSIDE so I could find it after paintin' t' inside. I wrapped newspaper around t' OUTSIDE o' t' tube fins, matey, tapin' it at t' edges/lips. Avast! Then I used flat black paint t' finish t' INSIDE o' t' tubes. I actually tried rolled up sandpaper t' reduce t' "nap" inside t' tube, ya bilge rat, but it didn't work very well. Arrr! Primer would have helped, shiver me timbers, but I was havin' a struggle justifyin' tryin' t' prime t' INSIDE o' t' engines. Again, I figured I was goin' for style, me hearties, nay performance, ya bilge rat, so I gave up on that part. Begad! I sort o' liked t' internal "charred" look o' t' engines. As a prior Air Force guy, I noticed t' nozzles o' jet engines on t' flight-line often had blackened look, arrr, me hearties, so I felt I be okay with it for space engines.

Color Scheme: All t' pictures o' t' PLANET Uranus showed it t' be a bluish color, so I figured I'd stay with this.

I primed t' fuselage with Krylon White Primer, shiver me timbers, matey, three coats, with light sandin' betwixt coats. Arrr! Arrr! This filled in t' few defects I had left after t' Filler. Ahoy! Blimey! I used Krylon True Blue for t' fuselage - I really like t' color this gave, and I be happy with t' finish here.

After paintin' t' inside o' t' tube fins black, matey, I took off t' outer maskin' paper. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Blimey! I then rolled up paper INSIDE t' tubes t' mask t' insides. Begad! Avast! Blimey! This allowed me t' "stack" t' tubes, which actually made paintin' t' outside easier. Well, blow me down! I had run out o' primer, so I went directly t' paintin' t' outside o' t' tubes Blue Ocean Breeze. Avast! I did 3 coats, with a light sandin' betwixt coats. Begad! Blimey! I liked this color as well. Avast! Arrr! Blimey! Although I hadn't thought it out ahead o' time, matey, I remember t' three colors that were common for bathroom tiles in t' 60s--- pastel yellow, matey, pastel pink, and pastel blue. This looked pretty close t' t' pastel blue, connectin' t' planetary and Toilet Paper theme.

Moment o' truth, matey, what would happen when I peeled off t' Mylar? Actually, matey, arrr, I be quite pleased with t' sharp edges. Begad! Pullin' t' tape off also raised some more "nap" off t' cardboard tubes, exactly what I wanted t' "rough it" for gluing.

As I had expected, despite t' masking, me bucko, thar was a little bleedin' o' black and blue (no pun intended) at t' edges o' t' tube fins. I used thin strips o' silver Mylar tape t' cover/accent t' edges here and at t' trailin' end o' t' fuselage. Blimey! As a USAFA grad, t' silver and blue together got me right under t' old squadron patch, me hearties, me bucko, as me Dad, me hearties, a retired AF Navigator/Bombardier says. Ahoy! I wrapped t' edges o' t' tape into t' inside o' t' tube. Ya scallywag! Lookin' back, shiver me timbers, this gave t' edge a bit o' a rough look; I probably would just have put it on t' OUTSIDE only, me bucko, me hearties, ya bilge rat, just up t' t' edge.

Now that this was finished, time t' see how things fit together. Avast, me proud beauty! Ya scallywag! I used medium CA t' glue 4 tubes into two tube-fin pairs, shiver me timbers, placin' t' glue along one o' t' "naked" strips previously covered by Mylar.   Layin' t' tubes flat gave me a good alignment.   I then matched up t' remainin' strips on each tube pair with t' strips on each side o' t' tail o' t' fuselage. Begad! They matched up pretty well, arrr, shiver me timbers, and t' medium CA gave me enough time t' make sure t' alignment was perfect. I got a pretty solid joint (as I later proved in flight, shiver me timbers, matey, but more on that later.) Fillets weren't needed, arrr, and t' fit covered t' "naked" areas.

I pried t' Mylar tape out o' t' defect in t' external coupler. Ya scallywag! Avast! This left a rougher edge.I glued in t' launch lug.If I had t' do it over, ya bilge rat, I would have pulled this off AFTER doin' t' filler step, but BEFORE painting, t' get a better look.

Next question, me bucko, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, where t' attach t' shock cord? If I attached it inside, it would get hit by t' ejection charge fairly directly, arrr, me bucko, and would also cause problem with slidin' out t' motor pod. Perhaps more importantly, if it came out t' tail, t' rocket would fall nose first. My launch site is about 3/4 grass, me hearties, 1/4 asphalt. Begad! Invariably t' better t' finish on t' rocket, ya bilge rat, t' more likely it will land on t' asphalt. Ya scallywag! Avast, me proud beauty! Also, while t' cardboard/maskin' tape/Elmer's Finish nose cone was holdin' t' finish well, I could feel that it was still a little "soft" and didn't think it would hold up t' a hard impact. Aye aye! Finally, I figured if I could get t' rocket t' descent in a horizontal position, t' rocket body itself would be addin' t' t' drag and slow it down.

With t' rocket painted, t' CG o' t' rocket body be right at t' region o' t' external coupler. Arrr! I threaded a needle with me Keelhaul®©™ shock cord into t' tube just above t' coupler next t' t' launch lug, and pull about two feet out t' after end o' t' fuselage. Ya scallywag! I then threaded a needle with t' ENDS o' a long loop o' dental floss through a hole just BELOW t' coupler and out t' aft end o' t' fuselage. Well, blow me down! Avast! I then threaded ANOTHER loop o' floss (loop 2) through this loop, me hearties, and pulled loop 2 through t' hole and out t' tail, keepin' t' ENDS o' loop 2 outside fuselage. I then used loop 2 t' pull t' shock cord BACK into t' tail o' t' fuselage and back through t' hole below t' coupler (there probably is an easier way t' do this, me bucko, but this is what I came up with.) I then tied a tight "loop" o' shock cord, me hearties, runnin' it just next t' t' launch lug, ya bilge rat, leavin' about 1 1/2 feet o' Keelhaul®©™ loose. Avast, me proud beauty! Yes, matey, this loop DID run inside t' rocket body, me bucko, when t' engine pod would slide in and out, ya bilge rat, shiver me timbers, but t' cord be runnin' longitudinally and wouldn't obstruct/catch on t' pod. Ahoy! Begad! I did add a bit o' thin CA t' secure it.

Since I wasn't sure how well me hollow nose cone would hold up t' t' Estes engine ejection blast, I cut a bulkhead out o' foam board and place it inside t' body. Ya scallywag! Blimey! It slid up t' t' "shoulder" that had been placed on t' front o' t' body tube. Aye aye! Blimey! Blimey! Ejection blast would hit t' bulkhead, arrr, ya bilge rat, but nay t' "formed" shape inside o' t' nose cone. Aye aye! Well, shiver me timbers, blow me down! Blimey! Instead o' gluin' it into place, me hearties, I placed a length o' Keelhaul®©™ on this in case I needed t' pull it out later (such as t' add nose weight), arrr, matey, shiver me timbers, and left that loose.

Engine Pod: I originally planned t' use a length o' BT20 as an engine mount AND pod. Aye aye! Avast! However, shiver me timbers, arrr, after buildin' it, me bucko, I discovered I wanted more room for me parachute and streamer. Ahoy! Ahoy! I used a BT20 for an engine mount. Ya scallywag! I then wrapped t' end o' a BT5 with electrical tape until it just fit inside t' BT20. Begad! Arrr! T' BT5 acted as BOTH an engine block AND a duct t' direct t' ejection force t' t' front o' t' body, ya bilge rat, where it hit t' bulkhead. Avast, me proud beauty! Begad! I used foamboard t' cut adapter rings for t' BT20 at t' tail and t' BT5 at t' front o' t' body. These were sanded t' slide loosely, matey, but hopefully t' front one would be tight enough t' seal t' ejection charges away from t' chute and streamer. Lookin' back, ya bilge rat, arrr, I probably should have used two adapter rings up front, matey, as a little bit o' ejection charge snuck around t' front rin' and slightly charred t' streamer.

I had initially planned on a long white "simulated TP" streamer t' recover t' rocket (in keepin' with t' theme). Avast, me proud beauty! Well, blow me down! However, me bucko, me hearties, matey, early on it be clear that given t' weight o' t' rocket a streamer would never safely slow t' rocket AND t' engine pod. Begad! Also, me hearties, ya bilge rat, again I knew t' nose cone was a little bit "soft" and wanted t' cushion t' landin' o' t' body as much as possible. My solution had two parts. Avast, me proud beauty! Avast! First, allow t' engine pod t' completely separate from t' body o' t' rocket, arrr, so t' two descend separately. Aye aye! This reduced t' weight o' t' body o' t' rocket (with t' soft cone). Begad! If I needed nose weight, I could add it t' t' front o' t' pod, rather than t' body. Ya scallywag! This is a NICE trick with aft ejection boost gliders, me bucko, by t' way. Blimey! You can adjust your CG by addin' weight t' t' front o' t' ejection pod, without affectin' t' weight or CG o' t' glider itself. Arrr! Ahoy! Then I could use me white streamer t' safely recover t' engine pod (which wasn't really very delicate and was nay that heavy), and a parachute t' recover t' body. Blimey! T' shock cord for t' body was attached t' OUTSIDE o' t' fuselage at t' CG, thus t' body descended horizontally under t' chute.

I used two pieces o' white crepe paper t' create t' streamer for t' body tube. Ahoy! I attached them side by side with silver Mylar tape. Arrr! I then accordion folded this into squares t' simulate toilet paper sheets. T' silver tape showed on one side, which I thought would be easy t' see (on t' off chance this bird flew outside me launch site-- yeah, right.) T' other side was straight white, which looked like, well, toilet paper. While for t' real theme this would be "rolled" around t' engine pod "spindle", ya bilge rat, me bucko, me experience is that this is unlikely t' "unroll" in flight durin' descent. Therefore I stayed with t' accordion fold. Ahoy! I used a length 10 times width, me hearties, accordin' t' Stine's book o' optimal streamer length, shiver me timbers, then added a couple o' inches t' give me space t' attach it t' t' BT5 section o' t' pod.

I used a couple o' thick rubber bands t' link t' parachute t' t' Keelhaul®©™ shock cord attached t' t' mid section o' t' exterior body o' t' rocket.

Note: Originally I used Tim Van Milligan's Model Rocket Design & Construction book t' make two semispherical parachutes, then "ironed" t' two together side t' side. Begad! T' idea was t' create a parachute with a "cleft" down t' middle, me bucko, me hearties, t' so called "glute chute." (For those who have actually intentionally fallen out o' perfectly good aircraft, thar be a parachute malfunction called a "Mae West" that looks somewhat similar.) However, me bucko, me hearties, while t' parachute looked good, the "glute chute" didn't pack very tightly, matey, and even reducin' t' engine pod diameter from BT20 t' BT5 didn't give me enough room t' actually use this. Aye aye! Blimey! I made an 8-line 12-inch chute out o' a green garbage bag (okay, matey, was gettin' tired o' t' theme at this point.)